Ultimate Wellness Program

Peer Support Programs that are trained and managed by Public Safety Psychologist, or licensed culturally competent psychotherapists. It is recommended that peer support members are elected by the employees within their department, and that all members receive a Basic 3-Day Peer Support Training and regular quarterly trainings. Peer support members should have 24/7 access to a Clinical Psychologist, or licensed culturally competent psychotherapist. It is recommended that all agencies follow the Peer Support Guidelines set forth by the International Association of Fire Chiefs.

Peer Support Programs for Fire Chiefs with the same training and guidelines.

Provide a peer-led support group.

Regional Peer Support Trainings and food/coffee and staff availability for mutual aid response to critical incidents such as line of duty deaths at other agencies. Provide funding for meals and have a fund to pay back those that deliver.

Provide flags to all the children of those killed in the line of duty, not just the spouse, and a flag to the parents (both, if divorced, not just the mother).

Peer Support Dog Program.

Create a highly informative mental health resource website and/or app.

A Public Safety Psychologist, or licensed culturally competent psychotherapist available to firefighter employees for immediate response to critical incidents.

Mandatory psychological debriefings for officer involved shootings, pediatric death calls, and in-custody deaths.

Annual Wellness Visits, if feasible, and as set forth by IACP guidelines.

Having a mental health fund to provide immediate psychological services to employees after exposure to traumatic on-duty incidents in order to avoid waiting for worker’s compensation approved care. Employees would immediately receive psychological debriefings, Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Therapy, grief counseling, and psychiatric medication as needed for 30 days following a critical incident.

In-House Public Safety Psychologist, or culturally competent licensed psychotherapist. Regular office hours offered at the station, or via telehealth.

Stipend for psychological training programs to develop culturally competent clinicians.

In-vivo exposure therapy after officer involved shootings. After the psychological debriefing, the officer would be accompanied to the scene of the incident before returning to duty (with the psychologist, or trained peer support member). Shooting at the range also recommended before returning to duty. Modified duty, or any transitional needs back to full and unrestricted duty to be determined by the psychologist.

Alcohol abuse prevention training.

Connect to the “AA First Responder Fellowship” meetings all over the state.

Provide a resource list of all the retreats that focus on first responder wellness throughout the country. Some are faith based, some are at no charge to attend, etc.

Line of Duty Death Therapy

Organize assistance to those injured who may live alone (food delivery, doctor’s appointments, pet care, house cleaning, etc.).

Have a suicide prevention, intervention, and postvention training, and a policy.

Wellness programs should begin in the Academies and continue in field training with visits with a licensed culturally competent clinician.

Holistic Wellness for firefighter employees including: financial wellness, nutritionist, personal training, yoga, etc.

Meditation Apps such as Calm, Headspace, and Unplug.

On-site child care, if feasible.

Meditation and Mindfulness Trainings.

Fire Family Wellness Trainings- immediately after the recruits graduate, and throughout their careers.